Butler Snow LLP is pleased to announce that attorney Phillip S. Sykes has been named a 2023 BTI Client Service All-Star for his work in Commercial Litigation. This is a notable distinct recognition because this is the only client-identified recognition a lawyer can receive. In its twenty-second year, the Client Service All-Star list, compiled by BTI Consulting Group, recognizes only 293 attorneys nationally. BTI describes those selected as practical, savvy, in the know, excellent at dealing with complexity, available and nimble.
Inclusion in the Client Service All-Star is available only after being independently identified and named by corporate counsel as delivering superior client service and thereafter being further vetted by BTI. This research is part of BTI’s ongoing Annual Survey of General Counsel, where more than 350 top legal decision makers at leading organizations across 15 industries are interviewed. Specifically about Sykes, one client noted, “Phillip doesn’t just get great results, he’s also a really great person and easy to work with.”
“We are proud of Phillip and congratulate him on this well-deserved recognition,” said Christopher R. Maddux, chair of Butler Snow. “Our firm’s unique culture is designed to promote excellence in client service, and Phillip’s selection demonstrates that our clients recognize his daily commitment to that principle.”
Sykes is a member of Butler Snow’s Commercial Litigation practice group. In the past 12 months, Sykes argued for a public company successfully defeating a TRO filed in federal court in Chicago to stop our client’s 20 state transaction valued at $7.5 billion; arbitrated claims in Dallas related to a breach of contract securing a substantial award in our client’s favor as well as defeating all counterclaims and persuading the arbitrators to award our client’s fees in the low seven figures; and tried another breach of contract case in federal court in Mississippi after which the jury returned a verdict for $5.6 million for our client. More generally, Sykes’ practice includes commercial, professional liability, environmental, and product liability litigation. An experienced litigator, his practice has taken him coast to coast with court appearances from New York to California. For his work, Sykes previously has been recognized by Chambers USA®, Best Lawyers in America® (multiple categories, including “Bet the Company Litigation”), and Super Lawyers®. He also is an experienced mediator and arbitrator. He is a member of the American Arbitration Association’s panel of neutral arbitrators.
Sykes is a member of many professional organizations, including, among others, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Mississippi Society of Certified Public Accountants, and the International Association of Defense Counsel. He recently served as Chair of the IADC’s Business Litigation Committee and in August 2023 will participate as a faculty member at the IADC’s Trial Academy at Stanford Law School. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in professional accountancy, magna cum laude, from Mississippi State University and practiced public accounting with KPMG before earning his Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, from the University of Mississippi School of Law. Sykes remains a licensed CPA.
In 2023, BTI Consulting Group named Butler Snow to its Client Service A-Team for the third consecutive year, ranking the firm as one of only 50 Am Law 200 firms with the best client service. Additionally, BTI Consulting Group named Butler Snow to its list of Most Recommended Law Firms for 2022. Inclusion on this list represents that it is one of the most frequently recommended firms by top legal decision-makers for delivering superior client service.
